Royal honour for Dr. Sajjad Rahnama'i

Local politics and Euregional cooperation committees
Sajjad Rahnama'i was a city council member and parliamentary leader in Heerlen from 2006 to 2018. In addition, he was a member of various local and cross-border committees, including the Audit Committee, the Presidium, the Euregional Cooperation Committee (Maastricht, Heerlen, Aachen and Hasselt), MAHAL, the Mayor of Heerlen and the Parkstad Council.

Volunteer work and good causes
In addition to his work in politics, Rahnama'i is co-founder and board member of Stichting Niek, a foundation that tries to create educational and internship opportunities for foreign students, doctors and researchers. Stichting Niek advocates for medical care and supplies in remote areas. Furthermore, Rahnama'i is co-founder and chairman of the SURE Foundation (Society of Urological Research and Education), which organizes lectures and educational activities for young urologists and promotes scientific research. He is also involved in the organization of the Simorq and, as a doctor, he is involved in the organization of sporting events, such as the Rabo Round and Cycle Cross in Heerlen.

Cum laude
Sajjad Rahnama'i, born in Tehran on 18 May 1979, has lived in the Netherlands since he was 12 years old. He graduated cum laude from UM in Medicine. In 2008, he received the Mosaic prize from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) and in 2013, he obtained his doctorate cum laude from the department of urology at UM for his research on bladder function disorders. He is currently a university lecturer at UM and works as a urologist at Uniklinik RWTH in Aachen, Germany.